Means for separating materials of different specific gravity



Jan. 15, 1935. A. s. ROTHGARN 1,937,640

MEANS FOR SEPARATING MATERIALS OF DIFFERENT SPECIFIC GRAVITY Filed April12, 193s [BOP/2270) Andrew ii. Roi/ 901'];

59 57b AZI Or/QeyJ Patented Jan. 15, 1935 MEANS FOR SEPARATING MATERIALSOF DIFFERENT SPECIFIC GRAVITY Andrew E. nmhgm'i, Minneapolis, Minm, as-

signor to Samuel 0. Glow, Minneapolis,

Minn.

Application April 12, 1933, Serial No. 665,652

11 Claims. (Cl. 209-136) My present invention provides a machine orapparatus capable 01 a wide range of usage for the separation ofrelatively heavy and relatively non-resilient foreign material, such asstones,

5 nails and other metallic objects, from relatively light much moreresilient stock such as corn or other grain. By proper adjustments ofthe coacting elements, the machine can be used to remove articles suchas hulled corn from lighter grain such as oats or wheat.

Generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices andcombinations cit-devices hereinafter described and defined in theclaims.

My invention takes advantage the fact that relatively heavy materialssuch as stones and metal articles have such a slight degree ofresilience that they will, when projected against a hard surface such asan impact plate, rebound very slightly, it at all, while resilientmaterial such as corn and other grain kernels, will rebound to averyconsiderable extent. By properly combining a feed device, a blower and adeflector having a properly arranged impact plate, separations ofrelatively hard and non-resilient materials from relatively resilientmaterials may, as I have found in practice, be very eflectually ac-.complished.

The invention is illustrated in the single view of drawing which is avertical longitudinal section through the machine, some parts thereofbeing broken away.

The machine illustrated comprises a main casing 1 which, as shown, is arectangular sheet metal shell. Located in and extended through the topof the casing, in the central portion thereof, is a feed hopper 2provided with an oblique discharge spout 3. Any suitable feedregulatingmechanism may be employed in this hopper, but as shown, it comprises apowerdriven feed cylinder 4. Located in one end of the casing 1 is a rancasing 5 and a tan head 6. which'latter will be power-driven in theusual or any suitable way, but rotated in acounterclockwise direction inrespect to the drawing. The fan casing 5 has a tangential air dischargespout- '1 that opens below the hopper 2. In the opposite end of thecasing 1, to wit: that end remote from ,the end in which the tan casing5 is located, there is provided a settling chamber 8 with a hopper-likebottom leading to a discharge spout 9. The upper .portion of thissettlin chamber 8 is provided with an air outlet port 10 that isconnected by an air pipe 11 to the inlet of the tan casing 5.

Located between the discharge spouts 'l oi the Ian casing and thesettling chamber 8, is a deflector of novel construction and in novelrelative arrangement to the other parts noted. This deflector, as shownand as preferably designed is in the form or a trough 12 formed of metalor other material. This trough-like structure 12. as shown, is providedon its bottom with lugs 13 adjustably secured by a set screw 14 or thelike to a cross shaft 15 that is fixed to the sides of the casing 1.Within the trough-like deflector 12 is an impact plate 16. This plate16, which is preferably of heavy sheet steel, is spaced a considerabledistance above but approximately parallel to the inclined bottom 01 thetrough 12.

This impact plate 16 terminates very far short of the lower end of thetrough and a considerable distance short or the upper end of saidtrough, but is so positioned that all but the very light materialsdischarged from the hopper spout 3 will fall against the same. The"bottom oi the trough 12 at its extreme upper end is formed with araised flange 17 for a somewhat minor yet important reason presently tobe noted.

For illustration, it will first be assumed that the machine is to beused to remove nails, stones and all such heavy and relativelynon-resilient foreign articles from a relatively light and resilientstock such as corn, commingled-with other grains. When the machine is inaction, these commingled materials will fall from thespout 3 through theair blast from the blower. All of the heavy and relatively non-resilientarticles such as the stones, nails or the like, on striking the inclinedimpact plate 16, will, under the action of gravity, simply slide downthe same and out of the lower end of the trough 12 and into somesuitable receptacle such as the removable drawer 18. Relativelyresilient materials such as corn,

on striking the impact plate 18, will rebound to a. considerable extent,and will be picked up by the air blast and be carried into the upperportion of the settling chamber 8. Some of the lighter materials will beblown directly into the settling chamber without coming into contactwith the plate 16. Some objects such as the lighter stone or pieces 01'wood or the like my be caught by the air blast and carried over theupper edge or the plate 16, but will slide back into the channel formedbetween the said plate .16'and the bottom of the trough 12, and fromthence will slide back into the receptacle 18. Here it will be notedthat the strongest part of the blast from the blower willbe directedabove theplate 16. However, there will be enough of an r blast iorced upover the bottom 01' said trough to prevent the lighter materials fromdropping back into the trough. The flange 17 will catch and hold someforeign materials that might be carried over into the chamber 8 directlyfrom the plate 16.

Attention is called to the fact that the greater 1 the pitch at whichthe trough 12and plate 16 are set, the greater will be the tendency totake relatively non-resilient and heavy materials from the lighter andmore resilient particles of the stock and conversely, the less the pitchin said trough and plate, the less will be the tendency to take heavierand relatively non-resilient articles from the main stock. Hence, byproper adjustments of the above described deflector, the machine may beadjusted for separating materials that difler by various degrees inresilience and specific gravity. For example, the machine can beadjusted to remove corn from oats and other relatively lightgrains.

The m'achine has, in practice, been found efil-- cient for the purposeshad in view. From what has been said, it will be understood that thesaid machine is capable of various modifications as to details ofconstruction and arrangement of parts herein'disclosed and claimed.

What I claim is:

1. In a device of the kind described, a settling chamber, a blower fordirecting a blast toward said settling chamber, an inclined-deflector inthe line of the blast from said blower to said settling chamber, andmeans for feeding commingled stock through said blast and onto saiddeflector, said deflector being open at its lower end for the dischargeof relatively non-resilient and relatively heavy articles and being openat its upper end for the discharge of lighter and more resilientarticles, said deflector having an impactplate that is spaced above andis approximately parallel to but terminated short of both ends of thebottom of said deflector.

2. In a device of the kind described, a settling chamber, a blower fordirecting a blast toward said settling chamber, an inclined deflector inthe line of the blast from said blower to said settling,

chamber, and means for feeding commingled stock through said blast andonto said deflector.

said deflector being open at its lower end for the discharge ofrelatively non-resilient and relatively heavy articles and being open atits upper end for the discharge of lighter and more resilient articles,said deflector being inclined in a direction reverse to the travel ofthe air therethrough, said deflector having an impact plate that isspaced chamber, a blower for directing a. blast toward said settlingchamber, an inclined deflector in the line of the blast from said blowerto said settling chamber, and means for feeding commingled stock throughsaid blast and onto said deflector, said deflector being open at itslower end for the discharge'of relatively non-resilient and relativelyheavy articles and being open at its upper end for the discharge oflighter and more resilient articles, said deflector having an impactplate that is spaced above and is approximately parallel to butterminated short of both ends of the bottom of said deflector, saiddeflector and its impact plate being adjustable to vary the anglesthereof in respect to a horizontal.

5. In a separator of the kind described, an inclined deflector having animpact plate set above and spaced from the inclined bottom thereof inthe same direction of inclination, means for delivering material to beseparated downwardly onto said impact plate, and means for producing aforced circulation of air upwardly in part above said impact plate andthrough the material and in part through the passage between saidimpactplate and the bottom of said deflector.

6. The structure defined in claim 5 in which the loweredge of saidimpact plate is located above the lower edge of the bottom of saiddeflector.

'l. The structure defined in claim 5 in which the upper edge of saidimpact plate is. terminated short of the upper edge of the bottomflector.

8. The structure defined in claim 5 in which the lower edge of saidimpact plate is located above the lower edge of the bottom of saiddeflector and the upper edge of said impact plate is terminated short ofthe upper edge of the bottom of said deflector. 1

9. In an apparatus for the separation of articles differing in specificgravity and/or resilience, an inclined deflector having an impact plateset above and spaced from the inclined bottom thereof in the samedirection of inclination, so as to afford a passage between said impactplate and the bottom of said'deflector, means for delivering material tobe separated onto said impact plate, and means for producing a forcedcirculation of air upwardly through the material delivered onto saidimpact plate.

10. The structure deflned in claim 9 in which the upper edge of saidimpact plate terminates short of the upper edge of the bottom of saiddeflector.

11. The structure deflned in claim 9 in which the upper edge of saidimpact plate terminates short of the upper edge of the bottom of saiddeflector, and in which the lower edge of said impact plate terminatesshort of the lower edge of the bottom of said deflector.

ANDREW E. RO'I'HQARN.

of said de-

